Buckle for belts and the like



Sept. 10,'1935.

` J. B. FREYslNGER BUCKLE FOR BELTS AND THE LIKE Filed oct. 51, i934 (fo/2n 9. @ev/Jing er Patented Sept. 10, 1935 UNITED STATE Sl PA-TENT'A OFFICE BUCKLE'. FOR BELTS AND THEr LIKE ApplicationOctober 31, 1934, Serial No. .750,800

3 Claims.

connected from one another, and the security with which the parts are held together when assembled.

Other objects willr be in'part obvious, and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features ofl construction, combination of elements and arrangement ofv parts which will be exemplirled in the constructionihereinafter set forth and the scopeof the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein is shown one embodiment which the present invention may take:

Fig. 1 is a front view of the buckle as applied to the ends of a belt;

Fig. 2 is a front View of one of the separable members or plates;

Fig. 3 is a like View of the other separate member or plate;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view through the assembled buckle, this view being taken substantially on line 4-4 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 but showing the parts in the act of being assembled.

Referring to the drawing in detail, my improved buckle comprises two separable members or plates A and B respectively. Each is formed of sheet metal. These plates may be of any suitable shape or configuration, but they are shown, for illustrative purposes, as being generally square or rectangular. Their front faces may bear suitable designs or decorations. The member A has a body portion IIJ which may have the appearance of a panel, and a side portion II. The opposite ends of the side portion are bent rearwardly to provide wings |3 which are suitably apertured, as at I4, so as to receive gudgeons I5 of a pivoted clamping member I6. The clamping member, as is usual, is formed of sheet metal and has one of its lips serrated as at I1 so as to provide teeth adapted to bite into the belt end |8. The plate is provided, and preferably at one side of the body portion, with an opening or slot I9. At the other side of the body portion I0 is a U-shaped spring tongue 20, the closed or U- shaped portion of which is offset forwardly of the plane of the plate. The free leg or arm 2| of` the tongue extendsrearwardly and terminates in a lip 22 which is generally parallel to, but offset rearwardly from, the plane of the body portion I0.

The member or plate B has a shape. similar to that of the member A. It is provided with a body portion 30 which is adapted to engage behind the body portion I0 of the other member. A. It also has a side portion 3| which carriesa clamping member I6 corresponding in construction to the opposed clamping member I6. Thev clamping member I6 is adapted to secure the other belt end i8' to the buckle. The plate B has, at its edge opposite thatof the extension 3|, aforwardly offset knuckle 32. which may be formed by providing a lug on the edge of the plate and then rolling the lug into cylindrical shape. The knuckle is of such size as to be accommodated by the slot I9. The side 32 of the knuckle forms a curved cam-like projection and provides, between itself and the body portion of the plate B,

a recess 33 in which the edge I9 of the slot I9 is adapted to engage. At the opposite side of the body portion is a slot 34, the outer edge of which is adapted to engage the arm 2| of the U-shaped tongue 20. When the two members are separated, the distance between the outer surface of the arm 2| and the edge I9' is slightly 30 greater than the distance between the knuckle 32 and the edge 35 so that, when the parts are assembled, the spring tongue is under compressionand the edge I9' is urged thereby against the knuckle.

The manner of assembling and disassembling the parts is clearly shown in Fig. 5. To assemble the parts, the body portions I0 and 30 are brought into overlapping relation, the lip 22 is inserted from the front through the slot 34, and the arm 2| of the U-shaped tongue is engaged with the outer edge 35 of that opening. Then the plates are swung towards each other so as to engage the knuckle in the slot I9, and when this is done, the edge I9 will ride over the opposed side 32 of the knuckle and into the recess 33. The spring tongue is now under compression so that the plate A is urged towards the left, referring to Fig. 4, and thus the edge I9 is resiliently maintained in the recess 33. The parts are now securely held in assembled relation. When it is desired to disassemble the two parts, it is merely necessary to push rearwardly on the knuckle, that is, in the direction of the arrow 40 (Fig. 4), and when this is done, the 55 knuckle is snapped back out of engagement with the edge I9.

It will be seen from the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, that I have provided, in accordance with the present invention, an improved buckle which comprises a, relatively few number of parts each of which may be very economically manufactured; that the two separable members may be very easily and quickly secured together and detached from one another with slight effort and in a convenient manner; and that the parts, when assembled, are securely held against accidental displacement.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specic features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

I claim as my invention:

1. A buckle of the character described having two separable plate members provided with overlapping portions, one of said overlapping portions having at opposite sides thereof a slot and a spring tongue, said spring tongue having a free arm disposed at an angle to the plane of the overlapping portion, the other of said overlapping portions having at opposite sides thereof a forwardly extending curved projection and a slot,

said projection forming between itself and the associated overlapping portion a recess, said tongue being positioned in said last mentioned slot with its arm engaging the outer edge of the slot, and said projection being accommodated by the other slot, and the inner edge of the latter slot being engaged in said recess.

2. A buckle of the character described having two separable plate members provided with overlapping portions, one of said plate members having at one edge a forwardly extending curved 10 projection and also having at the other side of the overlapping portion thereof an edge in opposed relation to said projection, the other of said plates having at one side a curved spring tongue provided with a free arm adapted to engage said mentioned edge, said second mentioned plate having at the opposite side of its overlapping portion an edge engaging behind said projection; and clamping members carried by the respective plate members.

3. A buckle of the character described having two separable plate members provided with overlapping portions, one of said plate members having at opposite sides of its overlapping portion a slot and a spring tongue, said spring tongue being of generally U-shape and having an arm disposed at an angle to the plane of the plate and terminating in a rearwardly oset lip, the other of said plates having at opposite sides of its overlapping portion a forwardly oiset knuckle and a slot, said knuckle forming between itself and the associated overlapping portion a recess, said tongue extending through said last mentioned slot and having its arm engaging the outer edge thereof, said knuckle extending through said first mentioned slot and the inner edge of the latter engaging in said recess, and clamping members carried by the respective plate members.

JOHN B. FREYSlTNGER. 

